75: India’s flight to freedom

Try a digital crossword, browse photo essays and pore over archival content on Google Arts & Culture’s virtual exhibition celebrating 75 years of India’s independence

India ki Udaan, an interactive virtual exhibition on Google Arts & Culture (GA&C) app to commemorate India’s 75th Independence Day, uses archival footage from history and accentuates them with vibrant illustrations to arrive at snackible forms of storytelling. You can browse the exhibition that dropped on GA&C on August 5 to view photo essays from the freedom movement, take a closer look at the green and white revolutions, read about men and women who have helped shape the nation in different spheres, from science to sports. You can also play a digital crossword to know how well you know the freedom movement.

Amit Sood, director GA&C, informs that further chapters will be added to this exhibition throughout the year: “The second edition should be out in two to three months. We are working with museums and archival foundations to continue sourcing relevant information. India at 75 cannot be a one-time, flash-in-the-pan exhibition.”

The colourful illustrations that pop up while navigating the exhibition are the handiwork of 10 young creative illustrators. The GA&C team scoured the internet to identify creators with distinct visual styles on Instagram and other platforms. “These illustrators worked with museum and archival material and surprised us with their storytelling abilities. These nuggets of information will enable users to quickly get into a story. The exhibits will occupy a few rooms in a physical building. In the digital space, we can go on and on and reach users worldwide,” says Sood.

GA&C partnered with the Archeological Survey of India, the Nehru Memorial Museum & Library in New Delhi, National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi, National Museum in New Delhi, Museum of Art & Photography in Bengaluru, among others, once they received the green signal from the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Yash Raj Films came forward to share content on Indian cinema over the decades. Sood adds that in addition to national bodies, they intend to identify and work with state and district-level archival bodies to find more hidden gems.

Photo essays take a viewer through the freedom movement involving Mahatma Gandhi, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru and others. The stories of green and white revolution have images interspersed with illustrations and texts to form the narratives. The science chapter To Infinity and Beyond looks at strides in space research, medicine and other areas. Milestones such as Rakesh Sharma’s journey into space, Chandrayan, India’s first digital computer are some of the starting points to take a deep dive into science. 

Women in STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics) recognises the contribution of one of India’s foremost women scientist Asima Chatterjee and also presents short personal stories of T K Anuradha, (retired) project director at ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), among others: “These personal stories can be inspirational to school children and women aspiring for careers in science,” states Sood. 

A chapter highlights pathfinders and pioneers such as Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Government of India’s first minister of health. Unforgettable Wins looks at awards and milestones in different streams, including sports.